For the Republic
by Halfwrong
Summary: Toph and Sokka go on a journey to solve as many of the world's problems as they can. Sokka's greatest challenge will be trying to re-instate the scattered White Lotus and stop spirit centered mysteries. Toph's greatest challenge will be trying to figure out which ones of Sokka's ideas are insane and which ones are brilliant. A Tokka story.
1. Chapter 1

A large crowd is gathered in the back alleys of the docks of Yue bay. Overly excited brutes and bookies began making bets as an ongoing 30-man rumble escalated before them. Fist fighters, non- benders and benders alike, were fighting it out in a no-holds free for all. The only rules were: no bending and no weapons. The fighters started making strange and very short lasting, alliances to make sure that they were the last man standing. Earth kingdom citizens, Fire nation nationals and Water tribesmen continued their pointless beat down completely unaware of four hooded figures making their way through the crowd.

The four made their way toward the makeshift fighting area, where the only thing separating the fighters and the audience was a very thick rope on the ground. They were beginning to encircle the fighters when the youngest among the four became engrossed in the spectacle. A rather tall Water tribesman and a very muscular Earth kingdom citizen were sweeping through the fight, back to back. They were outnumbered more than 5 to 1 but the Water tribesman was like an unstoppable wave flowing between the fighters while the Earth citizen was an immovable wall.

As the cheers of the crowd grew, a spectator bumped into the young man; knocking him down. As he tried to help him up, he noticed the uniform he was hiding beneath the cloak and quickly turned to run.

"POLICE! It's the Yu Dao Squad!" the spectator screamed as the crowd instantaneously began to run away in every direction. The fight forgotten, even the injured fighters flew past the alleys to avoid being caught. However, aside from the four that were prematurely found, there were a few other officers in hiding at specific corners. In particular, a very powerfully and dangerously temperamental earth bender known as Toph Beifong. Cursing under her breath, she launched herself in the middle of the stage to send out waves that would trip those running away carelessly.

"Sorry Captain, I got distracted!" cried the rookie that had messed up one of his first operations.

"Getting distracted gets you killed, you idiot! Now focus, even with seven of us, we can't catch them all." Toph tried to contain the situation but she and her methods were well known to veteran thieves and crooks. Though the new faces would get caught and processed, the experienced ones were already halfway in the clear. As she scanned the place for the more dangerous occupants, she heard one of the fighters laugh and swiftly run away. She furrowed her brow and swore she'd take out her frustrations on that particular fool that dared make light of them.

"Hey, I'm going to go catch that one guy that slithered out. Make sure to tie these guys up and meet me at the station, and that's an ORDER." She screamed as she gave chase to the mystery fighter.

The chase was not in the open, where it would have been Toph's overwhelming advantage, but between alleys and buildings. The stranger had long steady strides, Toph noticed, he would not be tiring any time soon. He was clever enough to try and not touch the ground or anything made of stone, but he always had to come down or else risk being cornered; Toph's hearing could pick up on his loud breathing and heartbeat. After a few minutes of hide and seek with the man, Toph simply yelled into the night and began building as many walls through the alleys as she could to box in the stranger. Very soon after, the man stood face to face with the world's strongest earth bender with a dead end to his back.

As Toph prepared for at least a little bit of resistance, the man began to laugh out loud. As he wiped away imaginary tears, he took off his hood and began walking towards the faux-captain of the Yu Dao police force.

"SOKKA! What in the spirits' name are you doing here!" - Toph

"Ha-ha, man, Toph, you sure gave me a scare there. I thought it was one of your other guys. They are a little too rough with me sometimes. You know . . . you gotta admit that I gave you a pretty good run for your money. But since we are already out here.. " With great relief, Sokka walked toward Toph, placing an arm around her shoulders like old friends. He couldn't, however, finish his sentence as she shot up her arm, punching him in the shoulder.

"Ouch! Toph, what's the deal" - Sokka

"You Meathead, you're under arrest" - Toph

Using the special metal rope that they used on earth benders and especially dangerous criminals, Toph tide up a very loud Sokka.

As Toph and a tied up Sokka walked through the police station that was filled with activity, they walked around the people with practiced ease. The earlier bust they had had been huge and they had trouble processing and incarcerating all the apprehended miscreants. Sokka lamely greeted the police officers and criminals alike with familiarity.

"Ok, we're in the station already, is the metal rope really necessary?" - Sokka

"Yes, now shut up Snoozles! I'm really angry this time." - Toph

"HA, so you weren't angry all those times before. I knew it!" - Sokka

"Be quiet. I'm trying to think here." - Toph

Toph and Sokka bickered back and forth as the majority of police and crooks both tried to ignore the famous pair's arguing. There were few people who could come in the between the two when they decided to argue, and everyone knew it. As they neared the cells, a very muscular earth bender was being escorted by a couple policemen. Sokka saw him and smiled.

"So, they caught you too, Pao, huh. I guess that had to happen eventually." Sokka said with a satisfied grin directed at the man that not an hour earlier, was fighting with him side by side. The earth bender named Pao, scoffed and puffed up his chest.

"I didn't get caught like you, I'm here to pay bail for Oma. Mom would skin me alive if I let him stay the night here." - Pao

Sokka's grin fell as he realized that he did, in fact, get away safely. He was even brazen enough to come to the station himself to bail someone else out. The courts were busy enough that if you weren't caught in the act and the crime was a minor one, they wouldn't even bother going after you. Sokka began to mutter darkly under his breath.

"Yeah, cuz you didn't have Toph Beifong chasing _you_. . ." - Sokka

"Yeah, yeah. . stuff it " - Pao

The earth bender pretended not to hear Sokka as he was taken to the cells to find his little brother and Sokka was taken to the temporary office of the faux captain of the Yu Dao police. The Yu Dao police, lead by Toph and made up of the past Yu Dao resistance and a few other volunteers, were supposed to be a temporary measure to keep peace in the newly established Republic City. However, how long "temporary" would be, nobody knew, so they treated Toph as the de-facto captain and the rest as true peacekeepers. As soon as they entered her office, Toph freed Sokka from the ropes and had him sit in front of her desk. She stared down at him in silence as he grew more uncomfortable under her scrutiny. He rubbed the back of his neck as he began to sweat and avoid eye contact. The tense silence was broken by Sokka, who couldn't stand the pressure any longer.

" So, ah, you're very angry. I guess. . . " Sokka began but Toph just narrowed her brows more.

He began to laugh nervously.

"Ha ha, ha, ok. So, you're very angry. Ok, that, I understand. But I do want to say that I've done wayyy worse in the past and..." He stopped again when that seemed to anger her even more as she began a low growl under her breath.

He began to make wild gestures with his hands as he tried to come up with another excuse but before he could, Toph explode at him.

"OF COURSE, I'M ANGRY!" The shout was heard by all in the station. Everyone in the station paused for a moment with caution, but after seeing that there would be no aftermath this time, they continued on with their work.

As silence fell once more between them, Sokka peaked between his fingers that were covering his face. He saw that Toph was thinking about something very hard. He really didn't know what was going through her head. He tried to break conversation again.

"I can pay the fine for the street fight." - Sokka

" I know you can. That's not what I'm angry about." - Toph

Sokka stopped cowering in his chair and sat up straight. He stared at his best friend turned police captain and wondered what was going on.

" So, you're _not _angry about the street fights?" - Sokka

"Oh, I'm angry about it quite a bit but that's not what I am _really _angry about _right now_. I'm angry about something else completely. I'm angry at _you_" - Toph

"You're angry about _me_ but not about the street fighting?" - Sokka

"Of course, I'm angry at _you._ This isn't just one street fight you've been involved in. I have no idea what you're up to most of the time! But everyone always comes to _me_ looking for answers about _you!_ I'm the only one left that anyone even bothers to question because Aang and Katara fly all over the place. You can give everyone the run around because you're an important councilman, but I can't, so that leaves _me_ holding the bag. I am left telling everyone again and again and again that I have no idea what my _supposedly_ best friend is up to. Then, they look at me like an idiot or like I'm the one covering for you or whatever it is they think I'm doing." - Toph

Toph stopped to take a breath as Sokka tried to respond but Toph continued.

"Worst of all though, is that some have already caught on and don't even bother asking about whatever it is you or Katara or Aang are doing because they already know, in team Avatar, I'm the odd one out. Did you know Katara stopped asking me about how you were doing and what you were up to in her letters months ago?"

Sokka fell into a quiet contemplation. It had been four years since the war had ended and three years since Republic City had been founded. The republic had been a brain child of Sokka's since the very beginning. This meant that as one of the founding councilmen, he commanded great authority and respect, but mostly authority. They weren't children anymore, or at least not irresponsibly young adults. He was already 20 and Toph was 17. She was no longer the small twelve-year-old girl that they found at the earth rumble and he was no longer the lanky fifteen-year-old that tried desperately to act like a warrior. That much was obvious to him as he was just barely above 6 feet tall now and she, despite still being much shorter than him, not so small or baby faced. She was a beautiful young woman now.

Time, however, did take its toll. The Gaang could barely get together a couple of times a year as they were all very busy people. The only person he saw regularly was Toph, but as she mentioned, they had grown more than slightly distant. They met up about once a month, but they barely talked. Neither wanted to mention their jobs as they were overwhelmed at times by them, but this led to shallow conversations and little actual reprieve.

The biggest rift between them, however, was his inventing. Sokka ran a factory and a laboratory. It was built and design by him and the mechanist to test whatever new crazy idea they could come up with. Since they didn't want their inventions to be used for evil ever again, they worked in absolute secrecy. It took up big chunks of his free time and he would disappear in his research for weeks at a time. When the subject came up between them, Toph could never keep up with Sokka's train of thought and would become frustrated.

Sokka, in that moment, decided he didn't want to lose his best friend. He had also missed her greatly but had been working in secrecy on solving several serious problems that concerned both the new Fire Lord, Zuko, and Aang. However, he no longer wanted to leave Toph in the dark. He trusted her more than anybody else in the world.

"Toph, you're right, and I'm sorry for leaving you out in the dark for so long." - Sokka

"You know that alone isn't gonna cut this time, right?" - Toph

"Yes, I know, which is why I'm going to tell you everything I've been up to and why. But I can't tell you here. It's not secure enough." - Sokka

"My office in the police station, not secure enough, really?" - Toph

"Someone could overhear us, or they could be eavesdropping. I want you to meet me tomorrow morning, if you can, in my lab. If you go, I'll tell you everything." - Sokka

"Everything?" - Toph

"Everything" - Sokka

Toph thought about for a second before simply exhaling. It seemed like a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders. She relaxed and looked at Sokka.

"Ok, Snoozles, but if I don't like what I hear, I'm going to be very angry. A very breaky kind of angry. Are we clear?" - Toph

"Very clear" - Sokka


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2- The Labs

The next day, Toph decided to go to Sokka's infamous laboratory in full uniform first thing in the morning. She didn't want to risk Sokka giving her the slip with the excuse of council business popping up or her own job distracting her. She even spent one of the vacation days that she rarely had any use for. For the last few years in Republic City, Sokka was known for simply disappearing for days at end without explanation. He always did have an excuse, however, saying that he was holed up trying to build an invention that eventually didn't hold up or visiting the mechanist to do who-knows-what.

As she made her way through the building, a few people recognized her and began talking amongst themselves. Though they found her presence peculiar, none were dumb enough to get in her way. Some were even afraid enough that they waited for her to be out of earshot before beginning to gossip. Reaching the heavy double doors of the inner laboratory that were guarded on each side by two earth benders, she simply waved the metal doors open. The benders tried their hardest to pretend she wasn't there and hoped that their boss would forget who was on duty at the time. Toph sealed the door behind her to prevent unwanted interruptions and began to look for the source of her ire.

"Ugh, would it kill you to be more quiet in the morning! Do you have any idea what time it is?" - S

Sokka slowly stood up from one of the tables he had been sleeping on, making a mess as he moved around the papers he was using as a blanket. His habit of waking up late and sleeping in had never really gone away. Toph watched him closely as he gathered random things from other shelves and tables, noticing how exhausted he seemed.

"You told me to show up in the morning, so here I am. Did you. . . sleep here last night? Did you even go back to your house at all yesterday? Spirits, I can smell you from here Snoozles." - T

"Well, excuse _me_ Her cleanliness, I was kind of in a hurry to prepare all kinds of things. I didn't really have to time to do much else." - S

"Look, Sokka, unlike half the idiots in this city, I don't care about what weird new idea or invention it is you're working on. Even if you put on a big presentation about it, I probably won't understand anything of whatever it is you're talking about. I just want to know why you keeping avoiding me - _us_, and keep disappearing." - Toph

"_A-ctually_ " - S

"UGH, I hate it when you say that." - T

"Now hold on, this is important. _Actually_, this has nothing to do with an invention or anything just, give me a moment. This is gonna be a kind of long explanation so I think you should take a seat first." - S

Sokka then brought seat near Toph so she could seat down. Toph tilted her head a little before shaking it. She stomped the ground and sent the seat flying against the wall, breaking it into a dozen pieces.

"Or not, you know, take a seat, break a seat, easy mistake." - S

" Sokka" - T

"Fine, fine, (_sigh_). So look, first of all, take this rock." - S

Sokka then took a palm sized rock from the table and gave it to Toph. Toph took it in her hands, unimpressed. She held it in both hands, waiting for what Sokka might be up to.

"Ok, it's a rock." - T

"Not just any rock, but a rock that glows." - S

"Meathead, a ton of rocks glow. They are called GLOWING rocks." - T

"Yes but this rock is different. it's a very special, weird rock."- S

Toph hesitated for a bit, feeling and playing with the rock in her hands. The rock _did_ feel weird in her hands. It was heavier than expected and there was a strange tingly sense about it that she couldn't quite place. It was as though the rock were humming ever so slightly.

"Huh, you know, it is a bit weird but so what? What so special about it?" - T

"It might be from the spirit world." - S

"WHAT! How did you steal a rock from the spirit world?! WHY did you steal a rock from the spirit world?" - T

"Wow, hey, that thing was found in Hei Bei's forest, West of Omashu. And I said that it _might_ be a spirit world rock. We're not sure yet." - S

Toph continued to flatten and play with the strange rock in her hands. She wasn't really sure what to make of it. She was mostly wondering what the rock had to do with Sokka disappearing.

"Shouldn't you tell Twinkle toes about this stuff. He _is_ the bridge to spirit world and all that. Also, what does this have to do with how you've been acting for the last couple of years." - T

"It has everything to do with it. If I tell Aang about this stuff, he'll waste days on end on something that could be nothing. The Avatar can't just up and disappear, chasing after rumors that only might be true. Remember that time he heard the rumor of a spirit terrorizing a mountain village?" - S

"Yeah, it turned out to be some old dude in a mask that was scaring people so he could buy the land for cheap." - T

"Exactly, and remember that time he heard a rumor about a secret group of Air nomads that just turned out to be a group of scammers that were selling fake artifacts?" - S

"Yeah, he was devastated, but what's your point?" - T

"My point is that Aang doesn't have the time to go chasing after everything that _may_ be a problem because he is busy dealing with things that are _definitely_ a problem. He just can't be everywhere at once." - S

"So what do you want him to do? You said that this might be a spirit rock. If the spirit world is spilling over our world like that, then this sounds like it is also a definite Avatar problem." - T

"Toph, the huge pile I have on the table behind me is full of things that might be huge problems or might be nothing at all. Different reports of spirits all across the continent, rebel armies gathering, local lords hiring mercenaries to do 'bad' things, plans to assassinate Zuko, and plans to frame half the council for treason." - S

"Wait, is this what you've been doing this whole time? Trying to save the world by yourself?" - T

"What? No, no, I've just been trying to organize the problems from probably not so bad to very, very bad. I couldn't do that spirit stuff by myself, that'd be crazy." - S

"Why didn't you tell any of us? We could've helped you!" - T

"I didn't want to tell you because I knew you would worry and would try to get involved." - S

"Damn right we would have!" - T

"No, see, that's why I couldn't tell any of you. If Aang heard any spirit rumors he'd convince Katara to help him chase after them, claiming that it's his duty as Avatar, and if Katara heard any rumor of people suffering, she'd make a speech about love and hope and convince Aang to go help them. I couldn't tell you because you're busy enough as it is trying to keep the streets safe and being the chief of police." - S

"So that's it. We'd just end up getting in the way?" - T

"Look, Toph, the only people capable of figuring out which rumors are real or not are people that have experience with all cultures and customs, have interacted intensively with the Fire Nation's military and have had previous experience with the spirit world. Do you know the only people that meet that criteria?" - S

"You, me, Sugar queen, and Twinkle toes." -T

"Exactly, the world needs Aang to keep it from falling apart, Aang needs Katara to keep him from falling apart, and Republic city needs you to keep it from falling apart. The only person that could possibly disappear without anyone noticing is me. All I have to do is say that I have an idea about this or that and pretend to lock myself up in here. I am the least important of the four of us. That's why two years ago, I decided to start doing this, because no one else that could had the time." - S

Toph stood there for a moment, trying to process the whole situation. Sokka had always been the idea guy and, to everyone's surprise, he just wasn't good at it, he was the _best_ at it (not that she would ever tell him). He was clumsy, but he was never careless. He was stubborn, but never blinded or unwilling to listen. It made sense, in a way, that he would continue to try and save the world with his plans and schedules. That, however, didn't mean she wasn't royally pissed and hurt that Sokka would hide such a big secret from her.

At the very least, Toph thought, the very worst case scenario had been avoided. Her worst fear wasn't that Sokka was hiding something from her or that he was up to no good. Her worst fear was that the two had simply drifted apart. She was afraid to find out that the only that they were friends in the first place was because they were trying to save the world. She didn't want to find out that only she still thought of them as best friends.

She sighed and put the spirit rock on the table. She faced Sokka with an angry face. She then punched him with all her strength.

"Ouwww!" - S

"That's for keeping this all a secret!" - T

She then hugged him as he rubbed his bruising arm.

"And that's for finally telling me." - T

"Aww, see, this is nice" - S

"Don't get used it Meathead." - T

It was nearly past midday when Sokka finished explaining to Toph the rest of the problems he was looking into. Unfortunately for Toph, nearly 80 percent of the problems were not ones she could involve herself with. They were nuanced problems with no clear or obvious answer. She couldn't help solve the growing homeless problem, the devaluing of gold, or the cultural war between imperial and democratic based social structures. She gave up trying to understand what a 'stock market' was 5 minutes into Sokka's explanation.

"What do you mean the money is imaginary? Then who collects the debts?!" - T

"No, you see, they _sell_ the debt and treat it as collateral for investors. Technically, no money was moved or made. Using a projection of what they _might_ be able to do with that money, people give them more money." - S

"That just sounds like gambling with someone else's imaginary money with a thousand extra steps!" - T

"I mean, you're not wrong, but we still need to monitor this new way of doing business to prevent artificial inflation and monopolies. It's complicated." - S

"It's not complicated, it's utterly stupid! Ugh, Snoozles, can't you give me something I can work with? I guess we had it easy in the war with Twinkle toes' ghosts telling us where to go and stuff. Now we have to figure it out all on our own. I wish we had a book with all the answers." - T

"A book with all the answers in it. A _book_. . . with _answers_" - S

Sokka began to mutter to himself as he fell into deep thought. Toph could practically hear the gears turning in Sokka's head as his train of thought ran away from him. She knew it was impossible to get his attention once he was fully lost in his thoughts so she just observed his near incomprehensible ranting. He was repeating the word book, Avatar, and fire over and over again. He ran straight to the pile of papers on the table and began dividing it into smaller piles and throwing a few in the trash after thoroughly ripping them up. Going quiet for a moment, Sokka also began to pin things to a wall nearby. Almost as an afterthought, he turned to look at Toph.

"Hey Toph, could you disappear for a few months?" - S

"Hmmm, sure?" - T


End file.
